The new proposal to split California into three states has been cleared, and its proponent, Timothy Draper, can begin collecting signatures to qualify for next year’s ballot. The proposal would split California into Northern California, California, and Southern California. Northern California would encompass the Bay Area all the way to the Oregon border, California would start in Los Angeles and cover coastal areas, and Southern California would start in Fresno and cover most of the southern state.

The proposal claims that there is a disproportionate concentration of wealth in Northern California around the Bay Area. If the proposal is enacted, California’s current assets would be divided among the three states, which can make their own decisions about taxes and spending. “The citizens of the whole state would be better served by three smaller state governments while preserving the historical boundaries of the various counties, cities, and towns,” Draper wrote in a statement according to the Times. The proposal also argues that changes in the state’s higher education, water, prison, transportation, health and retirement, and tax structure could lead to an overall healthier state.

Regardless of whether the proposal garners support or not, the measure requires the governor of California to issue a formal notice of approval to Congress by Jan. 1, 2019, which gives federal lawmakers 12 months to decide upon the split. But before the governor can send in approval, Draper must collect 365,880 signatures from registered voters for the proposal to qualify for the 2018 ballot. According to Alex Padilla, California’s secretary of state, the signature collection must be completed within 180 days which means that Draper has until Apr. 23, 2018 to complete it. If the proposal passes, there will be 52 states in the United States of America.